Sharp Words

What with the wedding and everything, I haven’t been keeping this as an ongoing list the way I usually do, which means I have no dates. I’m pretty sure I’ve managed to list everything I’ve read though – which even with all the excitement, has been a lot (rather embarrassingly, almost a book a day). Well, I have to relax somehow…

And this has definitely been my month for reading urban fantasy/supernatural (or paranormal) romance, call it what you will. I noticed in W H Smith the other day that it even has its own section now, while SF, fantasy and horror are all lumped in together… I suppose that booksellers want to promote the genre’s crossover appeal to ‘normal’ romance readers, rather than having the books hidden away in the section for geeks like me.

———–

The Heretic’s Daughter, Kathleen Kent. Own copy, first read.
My review for Blog Stop Book Tours

Grave Sight, Charlaine Harris. Library book, first read.
I’m getting to like this writer quite a lot. This isn’t one of the Sookie Stackhouse novels; it’s set in something more like our world and is about a woman who can see dead people and makes a living from it. Sounds corny but isn’t.

A Fistful of Charms, Kim Harrison. Library book, first read.
More urban fantasy – this one’s a lot more complex than most. The fourth in the series though, but it didn’t hurt to start there.

Superpowers, David J Schwartz. Library book, first read.
A fascinating look at what would happen if ordinary people got superpowers…

Starter for Ten, David Nicholls. Library book, first read.
I’d seen the film and really enjoyed it, and the book did not disappoint. For anyone who watched/watches University Challenge and/or has been a university student in the UK, this will strike a chord or two.

Jinian Footseer, Dervish Daughter and Jinian Star-eye, Sheri S Tepper. Own copies.
Quick and enjoyable reading – and no matter how often I do read them, there’s always something to be rediscovered.

The Magician’s Guild, The Novice and The High Lord, Trudi Canavan. Own copies.
A nice little fantasy series which I decided to re-read before putting up on BookMooch – because although I’ve read them before, I don’t like them enough to want to keep them. And I need shelf space.

Living Dead in Dallas, Club Dead, and Dead to the World, Charlaine Harris. Borrowed from Marion, first reads.
More Sookie Stackhouse; great bathtime reading.

The Tenth Kingdom, Kathryn Wesley. Own copy.
I still haven’t seen the whole of the TV series, though the book is great fun.

Monstrous Regiment, Terry Pratchett. Own copy.
Just for fun. This is one of my favourites of his.

Exit Strategy, Kelley Armstrong. Library book, first read.
The first in her non-Underworld series, about a hitwoman. Pretty interesting and very detailed.

Dead Witch Walking, Kim Harrison. Library book, first read.
The first book in this series, and hopefully I can track down the middle two. (Well, that’s what library reservations are for.)

Storm Born, Richelle Mead. Library book, first read.
Yep, more urban fantasy. Fairies and magic and shapeshifters and bondage in this one…

Blind Faith, Ben Elton. Library book, first read.
A world where everything’s turned into Big Brother (the TV show, that is). Not one of his best, though it has some very good points to make.

Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen. Own copy (pencil marks and highlighter pen and all, since it was my GCSE Eng Lit one).
I’ve really been enjoying Lost in Austen on ITV, and had the urge to re-read what’s probably one of my favourite ever books.

The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents, Terry Pratchett. Own copy.
I enjoy this Discworld novels aimed at kids just as much as the ‘adult’ ones – and this definitely deserved its Carnegie.

Dead as a Doornail, Definitely Dead, and All Together Dead, Charlaine Harris. Borrowed from Marion, first reads.
Yep, yet more Sookie Stackhouse novels.

Wizard’s Bane, Rick Cook. Borrowed from Marion, first read.
A cute little fantasy novel about how programming techniques can be applied to a system of magic; very much a product of its time though (1989) and sometimes reads like a spoof of popular fantasy.

Grave Surprise, Charlaine Harris. Library book, first read.
And yet more Charlaine Harris. I think I’ve read most of her work this month alone…

Don’t Cry for Me Aberystwyth, Malcom Pryce. Library book, first read.
The latest in the set of surreal private eye novels set in a truly bizarre Aberystwyth.

The Deeds of the Disturber, Elizabeth Peters. Library book, first read.
Another author that I’m really late in cottoning on to; I wish I’d started reading her stuff years ago. (But then, I wouldn’t have the pleasure of reading as much as possible straight away – well, whatever’s in the library, anyway).

Total for September 2008: 29 + 0 re-reads
Ongoing total for 2008: 145 + 10 re-reads